That said, I’m proud of X-23’s run. Two successful limited series and an ongoing series ain’t bad. Ditto for Daken [who is also ending his series.] From a supporting role in “Wolverine: Origins” to the lead of ongoing series that included him slicing Frank Castle to bits — enter Franken-Castle. Both were characters that gained traction in a market that, well, doesn’t really have a great track record of supporting new stuff. And both characters anchored legitimate monthly titles. We don’t do R&D at Marvel. We’ll stick by a title for a while — like we did with “Spider-Girl” — but there comes a point where that title has to earn, usually sooner than later.

The R&D thing sticks out a little. Thing is, Marvel do R&D all the time, in print and in digital, but usually Marvel have used this kind of line as a dig against DC in the past, implying that their sales aren’t up to scratch. It’s just a bit difficult to use it right now…